Paper making



Oct. 19 1926.

L. GRAFFLIN PAPER MAKING Filed Dec. 17 192s rsmwJ al'lozucl yd Patented Oct. 19, 1926.

" i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEWIS GRAFFLIN, OF LOCKLAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE BAUER BROS, COM- IANY, OIE PRINGFIELD, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

PAPER MAKING.

Application filed December 17, 1923.. Serial No. 681,063.

My invention relates to improvements in paper making and particularly relates to 1mproved methods and apparatus for working and refining rough paper stock and delivering the same to web or other forming machines in a continuous manner.

ln paper making as practiced today the I usual process is to feed the raw or rough stock into heaters where it is operated upon continuously from three to nine hours depending upon the condition-of the stock and the ultimate fineness to which it is to be reduced. The stock is then delivered into stock chests from which it is fed into refining engines generally of the "Jordan type and from thence into the web or other forming machines. Inasmuch as in the beating operation the stock is worked over for a oonsiderable period of time the delivery of the material from the heaters is necessarily an intermittent one and a number of boaters is usually required for each refining or Jordan engine. Each of these machines is a large consumer of power, an ordinary beater requiring 100 H. P. and a Jordan engine 150 H. P. In view of the slow operation and the intermittent delivery of the material from the boaters it requires from three to four boaters to each Jordan. In the heaters and Jordans as usually employed the operation of reducing the material is a cutting operation, cutting knives rotating against stationary abutments or opposing cutters in the process of reducing and refining paper stock.

The object of my invention is to produce a continuous process employing continuous saturating and grinding operations in the presence of water which will reduce and refine the paper stock ready for the web or other forming machine and deliver the same in a continuous and uniform manner without the use of either heaters or Jordans.

My inventionconsists in the method and apparatus hereinafter described and set forth in the claims. a

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1.'s a diagrammatic view illustrating in simple form the arrangement of the apparatus for carrying out my improved method. V

Figs. 2 and 3 are detail views of the grindthoroughly water.

saturated and suspended in In carrying out my invention ll take rough paper stock, whether it -be cut rags, wood or other pulp or any kind of suitable fibre or any combination of the same, and feed this into a saturator where it is agitated in the presence of a quantity of water until the stock is thoroughly saturated and suspended in the water and adapted to be delivered by the aid of suitable pumps or other methods to a grinding or attrition device, consisting preferably of rapidly rotating hardened metal disks with suitable grinding surfaces ar ranged to rotate in close proximity to each other. i

The saturated stock with sufficient water to suspend the same may becaused to flow in a continuous stream into the attrition machine and pass between. the high speed disks ing machine in a continuous flow.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, 1 represents a suitable conveyor or other feed- .ing device by which the stock may be fed' from any suitable source of supply into a saturator 2 having a suitable agitating or stirring device 3. Water is supplied in the proper quantity through a pipe i from any suitable source, avalve 5 furnishing means for regulating the quantityof water to the quantity of stock fed into the machine.

I From the bottom of the saturator a pipe6 leads to a centrifugal or other suitable pump 7 by means of which it is carried through a pipe 8 to the hopper 9 of the grinding machine and passes between the rapidly revolving disks 10, means such as a screw 10 and nut 1O being provided for adjusting the disks to secure the proper degree of fineness.

The stock being delivered to this grinding device in a continuous and uniform manner by reason ofa thorough saturation and suspension in the water will be thoroughly ground and reduced into the proper and pulpy mass which can be fed directto the Web or other forming machine.

In the drawings I have shown a stock chest 11 into which the ground finished stock flows and from thence it is pumped by a suitable pump 12 through pipe 13 into the hopper 4 of the web or other forming machine. Where a single attrition or grinding device is employed the stock chest can be dispensed with and the-finished material deli\ ered directly into the web or other forming machine. When employed the stock chest willbe provided with the usual stirring device which will keep the material in a liquid form adapted to be readily delivered by the pump or other means to the web or other forming machine.

I have found in practice that by the use of a saturating machine and an attrition machine equipped with high speed hardened metallic disks the rough paper stock after being thoroughly saturated and suspended in watercan be reduced in a continuous manner to the refined pulpy mass of the proper fineness for the molding or forming maghine without either the preliminary beating operation or the operation of the refining or Jordan engine;

By the use of an attrition machine employing 36" disks rotating at a speed of approximately 1200 revolutions per minute requiring substantially 100 II. P., I have been able to do the work of six heaters and two Jordans which would require ordinarily about 900 H. P. for their operation. a saving of approximately 800 H. P. besides securing a continuous instead of intermittent operation and with much more efiiciency in handling.

I have also found it possible by my improved apparatus and method to use lower grade stock. particularly where wood pulp is employed, as in the present methods certain partly digested pieces of wood slivers or knots will not be reduced by the heaters and'must be removed by screens, which by my method will be thoroughly reduced and refined as the high speed rotating disks will grind thoroughly reduce this material to the proper degree of fineness.

While I have preferably used a saturator in which the stock may be stirred or agitated in the presence of a quantity of water, without any effect on the material other than to thoroughly saturate the same, and cause it to be treated in a continuous flow through the apparatus. it maybe possible to effect a very material saving in power, with increased efficiency in operation, over the present process, by using. one or more beaters as saturators where said heaters are stalled bcaters will act as saturators for two grinding devices which will eliminate twenty-four heaters and eight Jordans with a. saving of over 3000 H. P. in the operation. In the attrition device which I preferably use, hardened metal disks rotating in opposite directions are employed. Hardened metal disks rotating in opposite directions operating upon the saturated and suspended stock have the advantage not only of increasing the capacity of the machine but also to a large extent in preventing the carrying of the stock around by the rotating operation with the result that it moves outwardly between and leaves the rotating disks, in a substantially radial direction. This also tends to prevent the cutting of the fibers,

thus preserving the fiber lengths.

lVith 3G disks rotating in opposite directions at 1200 revolutions per minute the disks at their peripheries pass each other at a rate of something over four miles a minute, and I have found it possible under certain conditions and with beneficial results to operate these disks at even much higher speeds.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. The method of reducing and refining paper stock which consists in saturating and suspending the same in water and delivering it in a continuous flow while suspended and saturated to an attrition machine having high speed oppositely rotating metal disks, passing the stock between said rotating disks and delivering the same into a web or other forming machine as a continuous operation.

2; The method of paper making which consists in feeding rough paper stock into a saturator with a suflicient quantity of water and delivering it in a suspended state and in a continuous flow to an attrition machine having high speed metal disks rotating in opposite directions with the suspended saturated stock passing between the disks where it is thoroughly reduced and refined while still in a suspended condition, and then delivering it to proper forming machines in a continuous flow.

3. In an apparatus for paper making, means for delivering rough stock, into a sat urator provided with continuously moving agitating devices. a water supply with means for regulating the same, an attrition machine consisting of high speed oppositely rotating metal disks. and means for delivering the suspended and saturated stock m0 Mamet a from the seturator to said attrition inaehine the suspended and saturated material into in a substantial continuous flow, as sp'eoisaid attrition machine and passing it therew fied. from to a Web or other forming machine in 4. In anapparatus for paper making a substantially continuous flow as specified. 5 and in combination with means for saturat- In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set ing and suspending rough stock, an attrition my hand this 11th day of December, 1923. machine having high speed oppositely rotating metal disks and means for delivering LEWIS GRAFFLIN. 

